Why Is There Evil In The World?

Why do bad things happen to “good” people? Why is there evil in the world? These age-old questions have haunted the human race almost since history began. Philosophers and theologians alike have tried their best to provide an explanation for the broken condition of our planet and our lives.

“But what,” you may ask, “does this topic have to do with the current debilitated state of our country, and setting things back on course here in America? Why should ‘the famished patriot’ be interested in such questions?”

Well … I submit to you that a sound, biblically-based world view is essential to the work of the present-day American patriot. We need to understand that ideas have consequences and that our universe, our world, is governed by unchanging principles.

I am certainly ill-equipped to answer the question. Let’s look at what some others have to say:

“ … The biblical answer is there are no “good” people. The Bible makes it abundantly clear that all of us are tainted by and infected with sin (Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 3:23; 1 John 1:8). Romans 3:10-18 could not be clearer about the non-existence of “good” people: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit. The poison of vipers is on their lips. Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know. There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Every human being on this planet deserves to be thrown into hell at this very moment. Every second we spend alive is only by the grace and mercy of God. Even the most terrible misery we could experience on this planet is merciful compared to what we deserve, eternal hell in the lake of fire.”

Michael Brown (United Reformed Church):

“First, we must understand that God did not create the world evil. The Bible reveals to us that God made all things good. He created humans in true righteousness and holiness. He crowned them with glory and honor and gave them dominion over the works of his hands. Violence, sorrow, and death were not part of man’s original experience; he only knew the blessing of life in God’s good earth. It was not until Adam sinned against God and broke the covenant into which he was placed that the horror of evil, pain, and death came to be a regular part of existence in this world. As a result of the fall, God could have judged the world immediately and plunged all of mankind into the eternal punishment we rightly deserve. It is only because of his great grace that he chose to redeem a people out of this fallen and dark world. That is why this age of suffering continues: God is gathering in his elect until the Last Day. We have the confidence that God is in fact doing this because he sent Christ his Son “who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age” (Gal. 1:4a).”

William Cirla (Lutheran Church Missouri Synod):

“The problem of suffering … is really a matter of the clay critiquing the work of the potter. The question lays a moral problem at God’s feet and then questions the existence of God. “Evil” implies “good” and our ability to discern the difference. Without an external objective standard of good and evil, we would have no ability to speak of evil in the world. Therefore, to call the existence of God into question on account of the presence of evil in the world presupposes a higher standard of the good against which to judge what is and isn’t evil.”

As American patriots, we should constantly be informing our minds, grappling with big-themed issues, and able to engage in cogent conversation on themes such as this. Perhaps you have a different explanation than those provided above.

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About the Famished Patriot

My name is Mark Weaver and I am a famished patriot. The hunger pangs first appeared in the early 1980's. In the first months of the Reagan era, my pastor began to teach Biblical Worldview from the pulpit. He also introduced me to the Puritans and to the Christian foundations of our American republic. I have been on a quest for nourishment ever since.